Mintabie Opal Mining
Photos from Peters opal mining days at Mintabie South Australia. Click the image to view a full size version.
Old fields approx 1980 Mintabie Opal Fields
Approaching Mintabie early days
Our first permanent camp, Mintabie
Best crystal opal from our mine
A great pocket of gem opal
Thick black opal seam
Peter classing opal
Drilling to blast the cap rock for bulldozer cut on our Watertank claim
Drilling for exposives
Kim & Robert
Storm approaching Mintabie
Our Watertank claim
Drilling shaft on our Watertank claim
Kim on top of our Watertank claim
Coffee Break – Peter and Robert down the mine
Peter checking trace
Peppa the mining dog outside the camp
Robert making explosive charge
Game of Soccer on day off from mining
Where did that bloody ball go?
King stone from one of our pockets
Beautiful Opal from our Crystal Valley mine
Red and green on Black Opal….the best of the pocket – Old Field
Large beautiful semi black Opal from our Water tank claim
Mintabie Opal….Cut and rough
Bruno—masterchef of the Mintabie progress association (And top quality miner
Building our first permanent mining camp
Sunset over Mintabie
Thankyou,
At the time it was just a way of life but in hindsight it was a special time and a wonderful journey.
I remember. Amazing how often these connections pop up. Mintabie is such a special opal field and now the opal from it is even more special. The BMR also holds special connection to my heart and keep in touch with so many who worked there. Life is short.
My best wishes
peter
Very much liked reading your story. I was lucky enough to have received a gift of a specimen of Mintabie opal from you some 30 years ago and I still have it. I am retired and was the Manager of the Gem and Mineral Collection at Geoscience Australia formally the BMR. I still volunteer cataloguing the collection. Steve Petkovski is the Curator.
I have passed a wonderful time reading the complete story. For person like me, from a country without gemmy opals this reading was a very interesting wintow to Australian opal fields.